1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a protecting apparatus for a horses, and more particularly to a safety apparatus designed for protecting the heels of a horse, such that the rear edge of a horse's heel can be protected, and a buffer support plate extended from the internal edge of the protecting apparatus support the bottom of the includes for supporting the bottom of a horse's hoof, so as to eliminate the pressure exerted onto the horse's hoof and improve the comfort for a horse to wear the protecting apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
While a horse is running or jumping, the horse's hoof touches the ground first when it lands, and thus the action impacts the bottom of a horse's hoof and a horse's heel directly at the moment of landing, not only causing discomfort to the horse, but also possibly injuring the horse. Appropriate safety protection and comfort measures are provided for protecting the horse's heel and the bottom of a horse hoof.
Referring to FIG. 1 for a conventional structural design used for a protecting apparatus for a horse, the design includes a hard protecting board 10 engaged with a horse's heel, a buffer support plate 11 extended from the center of the internal edge of the rear portion of the protecting board 10, a L-shaped metal plate 12 is riveted at an upper edge of the buffer support plate 11 by a rivet 16, a soft elastic protecting plate 13 sewed into an internal edge of the protecting board 10, a Velcro strap 14 disposed at an upper edge of the protecting plate 13, and a tying strap 15 disposed at a lower edge of the protecting plate 13 to constitute the basic functional architecture for a horse. The protecting plate 13 is used for wrapping the rear edge of the horse's heel, and the hard protecting board 10 is used for providing appropriate protections and preventing the horse's heel from being hit by external forces. In the meantime, the buffer support plate 11 extended from the protecting board 10 provides a support to the bottom of the horse's hoof, and the buffer support plate 11 is installed precisely to the direct pressure point of the landing of the horse's hoof, and the metal plate 12 is installed at the top of the buffer support plate 11 for enhancing the supporting strength, so that when the horse's hoof lands on a ground, an appropriate buffer can be provided to prevent the horse from being uncomfortable.
Although this conventional protecting apparatus for a horse can provide appropriate protections for the horse's heel, the structural design directly exposes the metal plate that is installed at the top of the buffer support plate, and the metal plate will produce frictions with the bottom of the horse's hoof and heel easily, and thus making the horse uncomfortable. The conventional protecting apparatus definitely requires further improvements.
Since the area of the buffer support plate is too small, the contact area of the buffer support plate with the bottom of the horse's hoof is too small as well, and it will adversely affect the buffering and supporting effects, such that when the horse's hoof lands on a ground, the force cannot be absorbed or offset effectively. The conventional structure intangibly lowers the installation effect, and thus such drawback also requires improvements.